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Tuesday, May 22, 2012

New Front Door How-To

So by now you all know that there isn't much that Michael and I don't at
least try to do ourselves first before going to the "professionals" and
this time it was our front door. After 20 years of wear and tear, it
needed a little sprucing up. The stain had faded and the wood needed some TLC.

The first thing to do is sand. Yes, the most fun part of any job...sanding. All the little cracks, curves, and crevasses. I want to say, "Awww, but mom do we haaavvve to?"

Yes, you have to. If you are painting or staining you have to give the new product something to hold on to. Here is the door sanded.

We decided we wanted to stain the door instead of painting it. We used a great product from Minwax called Polyshade. It is a colored stain with a sealer in it. I used foam brushes to apply and then you have to wait 6 hours to dry. Here it is with the first coat. Pretty color, but thin and not black. Second coat is required.

After the six hours of drying you have to take a very soft steel wool and lightly sand the door, then apply second coat. I actually decided to apply a third coat also.

During the drying time we were deciding whether or not to update our hardware. It was a little dated and the color had faded. Well, needless to say, doorhandles aren't cheap! Ugh! Close to $100!!

No thank you. So here is our knob sanded with 220 sandpaper ready for paint.

So....for an $8 can of spray paint (Rust-Oleum Universal Paint & Primer in One Oil Rubbed Bronze) we had ourselves a brand new door handle. Whew!

Good thing that you gave your front door a new look! Exterior doors are always prone to seasonal beatings through constant exposure to the elements like sunlight and rain. Well, you made a nice investment, in that case, since you kept the door looking great while preserving the wood for the following years. :)

It’s good that you went for a dark color on your front door. It made a beautiful contrast to the siding and trims of the house. However, if you wanted a lighter one, it would look great too. I suggest turquoise, if you want to change the color into a lighter shade. Danielle Bailey @ Vinylume Home Improvement

Nice improvement! This door is some kind of irreplaceable stuff, of course; it's vintage! Vintage pieces are a treasure. One shouldn't just let it go that easily. Glad that you still found a way on how to make this door alive without replacing it with a new one.